Trying something new – snowshoeing
I’ve been wanting to try snowshoeing for quite some time, and I finally had the opportunity a few Sundays ago! I visited Hartman Reserve, a densely wooded area in Cedar Falls, Iowa, with my parents, older brother, aunt and Steven. In the summer, Hartman Reserve has designated trail areas, but in the winter, you can walk wherever you damn well please (see photo in masthead above)!
My brother, dad, mom, Steven and me
Hartman Reserve has a $5 shoe rental that is good for the entire day (during their open hours). You can get the traditional wood snowshoes or a pair of modern metal snowshoes. We all got the modern ones, except for Steven. He got the traditional ones, and we switched shoes halfway through the hike so we could experience both.
In this picture, Steven has the traditional shoes on, and I have the modern ones on.
I felt like the newer aluminum ones were easier to walk in – you could pick your feet up more. The older, traditional ones required you to change your walking style. You had to glide more and they were heavier, so you could feel it in your legs.
I liked using both, but felt like I definitely got more of a workout from the traditional ones. And you know, I expected the snowshoes to sit on top of the snow when I was walking, for some reason. They don’t sink in as much as a shoe, but they definitely sink in!
Snowshoeing was a lot of fun, as I expected it to be! It was funny, it was getting to be pretty late in the day and I think I was the only one that really wanted to go. But I whined a bit and got my way, and everyone ended up having fun! Especially my brother, who insisted on racing me and stepping on my snowshoes so I would fall on my face.
Does anyone else have a naughty brother…
… or father?
I think snowshoeing is a good, slower activity for a couple or a large group. We had a lot of fun chatting (and goofing around). I wish we could have been out there longer (but, we had to get to rock climbing). We ended up snowshoeing 1.22 miles* in about 50 minutes.
Mom, me, and Aunt Sue.
I would love to snowshoe more often. Steven and I looked at how much they cost (in Sports Authority) for fun this weekend. $120?! I don’t think so! I will stick to rentals for now. I would like to see if the state park by our house rents them.
Have you ever tried snowshoeing? If you have, did you like it? If you haven’t, would you like to try?
Click “continue reading” to see more photos!
Me and Daddio
Nick misbehaving…
Mom being a POSER! Ha ha. I told her to pose so I could snap this pic!
Happy snowshoers?
Snowshoeing kicks up snow behind you!
So, my brother kept wanting to race me. In the picture above, we were standing on a frozen lake, and about to race when Steven grabbed my jacket and stopped me. I turned around to give him a look, and my brother went forward and fell flat on his face! In the picture below, I am trying to catch up (we were racing to the bench).
*The Gamin was still on when we got in the car to leave so it tracked that as well. I wish I could edit the data to take it out!
Themocracy
That sounds like a really fun winter activity to do – I know my boys would love it! You have such a fun family!
That’s a fabulous post, thanks! My boyfriend and I will go snowshoeing sometime in February – it’s his Christmas present to me :). Can’t wait!
Fun! We got snowshoes for Christmas from my in-laws this year, but we haven’t tried them out yet. Hopefully we’ll do it soon!
I got the book yesterday, and I’m already more than halfway through it– it’s an addictive read!! Thanks!!
Nice family pics 🙂
I’ve snowshoed a few times and always enjoy it…especially in the forest!
I’ve never tried it but have been curious. I heard it was harder than it looked.
I was interested in the snow shoes they had for runners, but then thought against it. That must be a grueling workout.
I thought it was super easy! Ha, we tried running in them though, and that was hard. We need the specific running ones! I read an article about those last year and thought they sounded crazy.
My aunt and uncle own snowshoes. They keep offering us to come stay with them. Use their snowshoes. Too bad they live in Maine! Looks like you had a great time!
Oooh fun!! I’ve never tried snowshoeing, but I’d love to. If it’s cold and nasty out, might as well have some fun with it, right?!
<3 <3
Oh I so want to try this!! I’ve been talking about it for a couple years now. I really need to get on that!
oh that does look super fun . . . although I have not ever tried!
I have always wanted to try snowshoeing. I looked into getting my family some for Christmas but when I saw the price, and realized my kids are still growing so they would need a bigger size later, I decided against it. Do you know of any place near us that rents them? I think we would love it!
Erin left a message (below) that you can get them at the Morton Arboretum for $8 a person! 🙂
Sounds like fun! Not much opportunity to snowshoe on the Gulf Coast.
Guf! The only place that rents snowshoes near me is REI and they charge $20 a day – and that’s the member price! Looks like you had a lot of fun though; looking at all your pictures makes me want to go again.
This looks like so much fun! We don’t really have an opportunity to do this kind of stuff in L.A. plus I am so uncoordinated that I would easily break a bone trying to snowshoe!
you have updated your blog! i love all the new header sections!!! i would love to go snowshoeing- just not sure where to go. there must be places around here with rentals. my friend got snowshoes for himself/his girlfriend for xmas– they are really expensive!!!! thanks for all the photos 🙂 p.s. thanks for the emails!!!!!!! i’m so far behind in responding, but wanted to thank you for sending!!!
I’ve never thought of trying that. It sounds like fun though. One winter “sport” I would love to do again is sledding. I miss doing that.
I’ve never tried snowshoeing but it looks fun! I’ve actually never been skiing or snowboarding either…snow isn’t a favorite 😉
That does sounds fun… I have never tried it… but next time we are in the northeast I might give it a try 🙂
So fun! The traditional snow shoes look like a lot more work. I know I have only tried the modern ones. But either way, looks like you guys had a ton of fun! It’s a work out too! I love the pics!! And $5 rentals, that definitely beats our $10 rentals! 🙂
I’ve always wanted to try. It looks like fun!
That looks so fun! We have friends out in Colorado and they invite us out sometimes. They like to ski, but not me. They suggested snow shoeing and I was intrigued 🙂 Looks so cool!
i’ve never used snow shoes. There’s a place near our house that you can go cross-country skiing, though.
That looks like so much fun! I’ve never been snowshoeing but I would definitely like to try it.
What a fun activity! I’ve never tried it, but should. Oh but the traditional ones are so pretty!
That looks fun, but kinda difficult. Glad you had a great time!
What a great activity! It’s so awesome that your family gets involved. I was just reading in Chicago Magazine that both the Chicago Botanic Garden and the Morton Arboretum do snowshoeing on their grounds in the winter. Only the Morton Arboretum rents the shoes, though. At the Botanic Garden you have to bring your own.
My dad has a pair so I have tried it. His aren’t the old wood style but they are quite long so it can be a bit of a challenge. The new versions in your photos look a lot shorter & would be fun to try. It can be fun to tromp around in boots too though.
I still can’t get over that you did snow shoeing followed by rock climbing! I would be up for trying out snow shoeing – looks like a blast from your pictures!
I’ve been wanting to tryjust haven’t gotten around to it. Looks fun!
Something else I want to try! Not to mention, this post got me wondering if there’s a pair of my dad’s old snowshoes in the garage at my mom’s house. We used to own a little place in Maine when I was very, very little. My dad used to hunt in the woods around the place and in the winter he would often hunt while wearing snowshoes. One of my favorite pictures of him is from that time and he is wearing the shoes.
I was hoping that State Park over by you would have snowshoeing, but I didn’t see it.
That would be cool if you found your dad’s!
I would LOVE to try showshoeing! I just have to convince my boyfriend . . . he still wont even hike with me!
injuries and DVDs re the yoga question. Well, it depends on what you’re doing on them. People overextend their knees, the crink their necks and spines, there are so many things people can do that can really hurt themselves but hey, if you’re smart about it and careful, that’s all you can do, right 🙂
Did you see my tips in the post for finding free/low cost yoga? It may help you!
Take care 🙂
Thanks Averie! I will keep those tips in mind! I did see your ideas for free yoga. We do have free yoga in Chicago in the summer! I just got some DVDs (to review) and I really like the first one so far, so I thought I would check out the other two 🙂
I always thought that snowshoes just glided across the snow kinda like little skis! I am glad to know that’s not how they work at all.
We don’t have enough snow each year to hardly build a snowman so no snowshoeing here! Love the pictures!!
i’ve never snow shoed before – but it looks like a lot of fun. my fave part of winter activities is drinking hot cocoa by a fire afterwards. 🙂
I’ve only been snow shoeing once, when I was visiting Colorado. It was so much fun! I would love to do it more often!
I really like the new aluminum snowshoes compared to the old wooden ones. They have the hooks on the bottom to help you get up hills so you wont slip!
You’re right – I forgot to mention that! The new ones have the metal grip on the bottom. It felt funny under my foot!
I SO want to try this! It looks like so much fun, and like rock climbing, it’s something different to do. I just need snow around here, I guess. 🙂
That pic is adorable! I got a pair on the cheap at TJ max. Not even kidding. SCORE!
I’ve never tried that, but have a few friends that do here in Utah. You would think that I would have tried it before.
I have been cross country skiing. That is fun and a major workout, too.
I tried snowshoeing once, but the rentals were more expensive than the ones you got so I haven’t done it again. I don’t think I’d buy snowshoes unless I needed them for transportation because I like cross-country skiing better (and I already have skis).
That’s so cool! What a fun thing to try- I wonder if I could do that here? We haven’t had enough snow lately though…hmm. Another reason to visit your area!